Four of a Kind

Around the bay area there are really four notable peaks, at least when it comes to cycling.

First, there's Mt Diablo way over in the east bay. From the peak you can see all the way to the Sierras on a clear day, and nearly everywhere in the bay area if you look the other direction. It's really quite spectacular.

I climbed Mt Diablo back in 2012, chasing a friend of mine up the hill, making it the first peak I conquered.

Mt Um was the next one I crossed off the list, after it was finally opened to the public back in 2017, and I've summited it a couple more times since then.

Mt Hamilton, the tallest peak and upon which sits the Lick Observatory, was the next to fall earlier this year. Despite it's superlatives, I think it's my least favourite peak to climb.

Finally, this week, the last peak has been summited: Mt Tamalpais.

The view from the top was uhhhhhh...

"Moist and opaque."

Thankfully there was some better scenery on the way up, and a standout location was Alpine Dam.

Which holds back this picturesque reservoir.

And makes a great backdrop for bike photos.

That sign can't stop my bike because my bike can't read.

Will I do it again? That's hard to say. It's 4 hours of driving for 4 hours of riding, and the summit itself was highly underwhelming thanks to the marine layer blocking out the view. I think if I do ride here again, I'll ride up past Alpine Lake, then make a lollipop loop by dropping down to Stinson Beach, riding along the coast, then climbing back up again to return by backtracking past Alpine Lake.

But it was a nice day on the bike.